TUESDAY 9th
Genesis 3:1-21
Continuing from where we left off yesterday, the question could be asked, ‘how could Cain have acted differently, perhaps he didn’t know any different?’
I think it would be fair to say that both his parents, Adam and Eve would have shared with their children something of their history or story. We know what it was, how the fall came about and the banishment from the garden of Eden.
Adam and Eve had learned a hard lesson and any good parent would want to retell their story to save their children from making the same mistakes. I really do not think that in retelling what happened that they would have missed out telling the boys something of the wonder of God’s provision for them, remember after they had sinned, they attempted to cover themselves by taking fig leaves to make an apron, they attempted to deal with the sin problem by their own works, their own effort. (v7) Later we read in Genesis 3:21 ‘And the Lord God made for Adam and his wife garments of skins and clothed them.’ This provision would have spoken to them of the shedding of blood in the killing of the animal that provided the covering they needed after they had sinned. Here was God showing what needed to be done, and what would be acceptable before him and although we have a few words in our Scriptures describing this incident I am sure that Adam and Eve knew exactly what God was doing and in what it foreshadowed and would have told the boys all the details. The action of Abel later shows that he had understood something of this and yet Cain had refused the way of faith and obedience by preferring the way of a work-based religion. We learn later in Scripture that without the shedding of blood there is no remission of sin. (Leviticus 17:11, Hebrews 9:22)
Abel – I will do it God’s way, Cain – I will do it my way!
Although it is important to stress the importance of salvation by faith alone and in Christ alone it should also be stressed that although works cannot lead to salvation, works should be an evidence that we have come to salvation. This is the whole purpose of why James wrote his epistle. not to contradict Paul and the other apostles on what they taught, that salvation is by faith alone but to show that once saved, works should complement our faith. James 2:18 ‘But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works.’
Hebrews 11:4 ‘By faith Abel offered to God a more acceptable sacrifice than Cain, through which he was commended as righteous, God commending him by accepting his gifts. And through his faith, though he died, he still speaks’
A final thought that really links back to Cain and his fruit. I think we can learn even more from this by taking from verse 4 the word ‘acceptable’, (ESV) and I believe that we should be ensuring that as we live out our life of faith we need to ensure that what we do, what we say, where we go, how we express ourselves is acceptable in the eyes of God. We personally do not need to come before God as Abel did with a blood sacrifice – Christ has offered himself on our behalf and he became the acceptable sacrifice, we in turn in our response need to live in an acceptable way.
Psalm 19:14 ‘Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O LORD, my rock and my redeemer.’
Proverbs 10:32 ‘The lips of the righteous know what is acceptable, but the mouth of the wicked, what is perverse.’
Paul sums it up for us in Romans 12:1-2 ‘I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.’
May we be approved and acceptable to the Lord our God as we seek to live by faith.
I’ll Walk with God from this day on
His helping hand I’ll lean upon
This is my prayer, my humble plea
May the Lord be ever with me
There is no death, tho’ eyes grow dim
There is no fear when I’m near to Him
I’ll lean on Him forever
And He’ll forsake me never
He will not fail me
As long as my faith is strong
Whatever road I may walk along
I’ll Walk with God, I’ll take His hand
I’ll talk with God, He’ll understand
I’ll pray to Him, each day to Him
And He’ll hear the words that I say
His hand will guide my throne and rod
And I’ll never walk alone
While I walk with God
CCLI788682